This invention relates to radiant heaters and is more specifically directed to a wood burning radiant heater which thermostatically controls the rate of burning of the firewood and provides a means for cooling the wall adjacent the exhaust pipe to prevent overheating of the wall.
Prior known radiant heaters for use in mobile homes and the like have generally utilized combustion air drawn from within the living space. This arrangement has and can easily result in asphyxiation of the occupants of the rooms if insufficient air is drawn in from outdoors. This condition can easily occur in tightly constructed mobile homes. An additional disadvantage of previous radiant heaters has resulted from runaway combustion of firewood within the combustion compartment. Since these devices have generally utilized manual control of the inlet air, the hotter the compartment becomes, the faster the wood burns. Runaway burning has resulted in overheating of these devices and consequent fire in surrounding combustible material. A related problem with the previously known devices has been overheating of the exhaust pipe where it passes through a wall which has occasionally resulted in burning of combustible walls particularly in mobile homes.